Families hoping for a glimpse of the new Mini were disappointed.

BMW failed to show up to a fete at Templars Square Shopping Centre in Cowley, Oxford. The company had promised to show off the new Mini and C1 motorbike.

The display of motor vehicle engineering had been organised by the Oxford College of Further Education last Friday and Saturday.

However on Thursday, the college received a call from BMW to say the vehicles would not be appearing.

BMW spokesman Martina Mertes said: "We are sorry that the new Mini and the motor bike could not be there, but there is only limited availability and they had to be with a big dealer in Lisbon.

"Oxford College were told a few days before the event. It was a miscalculation on our part, I am afraid."

Ms Mertes said there were no plans to show the new car in Oxford before its release into showrooms on July 7.

Templars Square administrator, Karen Ritchie, said: "As far as we were concerned, everything was going ahead as planned.

"Members of the public kept coming up to us asking where the Mini and the motorbike were and that was the first time we knew BMW weren't present. There were a lot of disappointed people."

Linda Higgins of Duncan Close, Eynsham, had gone to the shopping centre just to see the new car.

She said: "It was very disappointing that we didn't get to see the new Mini after travelling over from Eynsham. My father worked as an engineer on the original car and it would of been nice to see what BMW have done with the new version.